Bestiary (Vanchilia Supplement)

Most animals carry on like they always have and are present on the ground, and on many skylands that can accommodate them. Since not all animals got on all islands there are ecosystems that are devoid entirely of some species and have adjusted as a result, but all islands have a few flying creatures, since islands in the sky aren't barring their access.

This is intended to serve as a supplement to the Monster Manual, touching on creatures that have a different role in Vanchilia than they might in planes like the Forgotten Realms. Or creatures that have adapted to life on the plane in a unique way, or that have been altered either by natural selection or by one of the wild magic storms. As such, this will not be a comprehensive list of all the creatures that can be found in the plane.

Aarakocra

(Monster Manual pg. 12)

The presence of the skylands in the world of Orizon has given it a unique relationship with the elemental plane of air. Aarakocra have several nest-like villages on the world of Orizon, usually centered around portals to the elemental plane of air. Many of these bird-men view Orizon as a place of “tranquil skies.” Some live outside of these independent communities and travel.

Many aarakocra find lucrative professions as messengers, taking advantage of their ability to fly independently of magic or ships to travel across the skies.

Aboleth

(Monster Manual pg. 13)

Aboleth may be rare on other planes, but on Orizon they are nearly extinct, bare handfuls of the terrifying lurkers exist. They were hunted down by the ancients and driven to the deepest pits of the oceans or murky underground lakes. There are few aboleths in Orizon, but their hatred is even greater and they desire nothing more than to take the world the ancients ruled and claim it as their own.

Aboleth are, when they are heard of, considered to be little more than myths, a perception that they enjoy spreading. Some invent personas as gods, using their abilites to induce worshippers into slavery.

Animated Object

(Monster Manual pg. 19)

These constructs are typically created to guard a spellcaster's lair, although, due to the fact that they are crated by being infused with powerful magic, an animated object can also be an effect of a wild magic storm. Many an adventurer has been caught off guard by a seemingly uninteresting object coming to life and attacking them.That is if the overlord doesn't find them first.

Azer

(Monster Manuel pg. 22)

Despite their constructed appearance, these beings are actually elementals. They share a lot of similarities with dwarves such as appearance, and mastery with metals and gems, although they are a bit bigger.

Banderhobb

(Volo's Guide to Monsters pg. 122)

These fleshy shadows come from hags who delved too deep into the secrets of the umbral plane. From the brief period of time during the breaking when the two planes met, a coven of hags pulled the secrets of the creation of the shadow beasts from the Umbral’s nature. Though their lessons were incomplete and the hags are only able to maintain these creatures for a short time, they are powerful brutish servants to those who know how to create them.

It is believed that, should a Banderhobb ever be created within the umbral plane, the creature would be all but immortal, able to draw from the shadowed energies of the plane to sustain its life.

Behir

(Monster Manual pg.25)

These long blue serpentine creatures enjoy stalking sky-reefs, Huge pieces of rock extending out of the water. They often seem like a good place to dock for airships. Most experienced sailors won't even go near a sky-reef for this reason. Behir are six legged creatures who can walk and climb very quickly. If found and captured, behir are often used in the gladitorial pits of the skylands. .

Beholder

(Monster Manual pg. 26-30)

(Volo's Guide to Monsters pg. 5-18)

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The mad beholders enjoy caves as strongholds, they exploit their ability to fly and their disintegration rays to carve tunnels into the caves, popping out from the shadowy underbelly of a cave to attack without their true home being discovered, or to make it much more difficult for people to invade without being able to fly.

Bison

(Homebrew: Original )

The bison are large terrestrial animals that roam the plains. They travel in huge shaggy herds, grazing on the tough grasses in the open expanses. The bison are large, heavy and shaggy, they have thick horns on top of thicker heads.

Bison are good swimmers and can cross rivers almost half a mile wide.

On Vanchilia bison travel in vast herds along the ground territories, and make for rich eating for large hunters like dragons.

Bulette

(Monster Manual pg. 34)

Land Sharks are a nightmare for the people of the ground territories, they strike without warning to devastating effect. A group of Bulettes is called a shiver, because the shivering ground is the first sign of the abject destruction that is to come.

Bulettes are a danger unknown on the skylands.

Cerberus

(Homebrew: Original)

The three headed hound, a powerful creature often used as a guardian for mythical sites. Later in life these creatures develop the abilities to command powerful magical attacks through their individual heads. Each of which has a personality unique to it, personalities that may squabble or cooperate as needs must. Though if the beast is content the heads are individually calm and cooperative.

A cerberus, if properly trained and raised, are fiercly loyal beasts, faithfully serving their masters for centuries on end. Some cerberus stay to their work even past the deaths of their old masters.

These creatures are most frequently seen underground, they enjoy borders, living on the edge of caves and caverns, fiercely guarding their territory against intruders.The overlord has 3 of these as a personal pet.

Centaur

(Monster Manual pg. 38.)

Centaurs on Vanchilia roam the broad plains and the hidden groves and almost never travel to the flatlands. They are either the bitter enemies of the monstrous armies of Orcs and Goblins or sometimes, their outriders. Which depends on the tribe and the individual. In the case of the Ulan, centaur are the dominant members.

Chimera

(Monster Manual pg. 39)

Chimera on Vanchilia are the products of the god of madness and genius, Desim. Long ago he was asked to grant mortals some way to survive the wild magic storms, to mitigate their effects on the world. So he created the Chimera.

In truth, his solution worked, through some means no one has been able to figure out, a Chimera absorbs the wild magic and no storms occur near a Chimera. Unfortunately the chimera are still deadly and vicious, so few are able to ever take advantage of this benefit.

Chitines

(Volo's Guide to Monsters Pg. 131-132)

Driders are a creation of Drow magic, but the process was not formed perfectly, one very early failure resulted in the creation of the first chitines. Though they were considered a failure as soliders , they were considered a successful slave race. Now transformation into a chitine is dangled as a threat over the heads of the Drow’s slaves.

There is the risk among the drow people that an ambitious or wrathful choldrith might escape and lead a revolt with the obedient chitines as a slave army against their former masters. So any choldriths are either kept under tight scrutiny, even lock and key, or simply killed immediately.

Cloaker

(Monster Manual pg. 41)

Some cloakers cling to the bottoms of land, blending into the underbelly of soil and shadow and waiting until nightfall to hunt their prey under the cover of darkness.

Sailors and those who live in the expanses of the ground are advised to “watch the stars” and run for cover should they ever see a cloaker’s telltale silhouette against the night sky.

Couatl

(Monster Manual pg. 43)

The energies of the breaking unbound couatl from their ancient oaths. They were set free to spread and breed, though they do so rarely.

Couatl now seek out new duties to put themselves toward, driven by an almost need. Often they will entreat the gods for a purpose they can put themselves to, or they will take it upon themselves to act, appointing themselves as guardians or caretakers of sacred or special places.

Darklings

(Volo's Guide to Monsters pg. 134)

The breaking interfered with a great deal, some of it was quickly set right, ground back into its proper place simply by momentum. In the breaking, the Umbral and fey planes met, briefly overlapping and connecting. Some fey were caught in the mix, becoming irrevocably altered by the sudden influx of the decayed shadowy energy of the umbral and became darklings.

Many darklings have abandoned the sunlight and renewed energy of Faerie and have fled to the security of the Umbral. These people have become one of the largest populations of the Umbral, where they come as close as possible as people can to thriving in the shadowy wasteland. Some Umbral develop portals between the Umbral and Faerie, as they hope to see some semblance of the ancestral home they left behind.

Death Knight

(Monster Manual pg. 47)

A fallen paladin’s soul is considered a coup in the underworld, demons and devils actively try to tempt paladins for their masters, or to stand along them in a literal coup against the lords of the pit.

The demon lord Hermitno was a Death Knight that overthrew its old master. He was a paladin promised revenge, that flug himself into the role and the power.The overlord has a couple of these as his personal guards and uses them as entertainment.

Demons and Devils

(Monster Manual pg. 50-78)

In the pits of Vanchilia, demons and devils war, but this is not an endless conflict, but instead constant skirmishes for petty power and position. On Vanchilia, Incancatus has promised the greatest demons and devils the positions of gods, should he ever be freed to destroy and rebuild. The wars between devils and demons are skirmishes designed to upset another’s position in Incancatus’ eyes, or to remove a rival or idealogical opponent. Lesser devils and demons fight each other simply to distinquish themselves and their power.

Devils and demons also frequently war between themselves, devil against devil and demon against demon, jockeying for a position in the damned court, or as one of the fell lord’s generals and lieutenants.

Dinosaurs

(Monster Manual pg. 79-80)

(Volo's Guide to Monsters pg. 139-140)

One of the most complicated cracks broke in Orizon during the breaking was a crack in time. The ancient precursors to modern life roamed through it. Now dinosaurs roam remote regions of Orizon’s ground lands, and there’s rumor that there is a large island somewhere in the ocean where they and other ancient beasts are the only inhabitants. Some dinosaurs do intrude into the settled areas and they are considered a worry, but not a tremendous one.

Most people who encounter dinosaurs, beyond their amazement, simply strive to give them a wide berth, “after all, what are we going to do, push it away?” Predatory dinosaurs on the other hand are considered a menace, people simply avoid them and pray they aren’t hungry.

Pterodactyls are trained as flying mounts, their eggs snatched and carried great distances to serve as long-flying simple mounts, popular among scouts and couriers.

Dragons

(Monster Manual pg. 86-118)

Dragons have adapted well to Vanchilia, provide lofted nests secure from danger that provide a magnificent view of their hunting grounds filled with large beasts. The same reasons that humans sought them out s refuge following the fallout makes them appealing to dragons as well. Many dragons seek to claim a cave as their home, and will fight bitterly for a choice one.

During the breaking, the most powerful dragons were destroyed by the cascade of energy, only the youngest and the weakest survived the event. Very few dragons have lived through the following turmoil to become ancient, but the oldest of them, such as the Red Empress Ruatha, were hatchlings when the breaking struck and have lived to be some of the oldest and most powerful beings in the world.The overlord being the cruel person he is loves to take dragons and suck out there magical energy and use it as his own.

Draegloth

(Volo's Guide to Monsters pg. 141)

The drow queens crave power, some are so desperate for it that they will even tap the horible depths of the pit, dragging up demons and binding them to drow infants, warping them into monsters that will serve their house absolutely and crush their enemies.

Drider

(Monster Manual pg. 120)

Lolth has only the most distant presence on Orizon, maybe a few small cults worship the spider queen so no driders emerge through her intervention. On Orizon driders emerged as a result of magical enhancement following drow biomancy experiments. Through a secret ritual drow warriors can be magically enhanced to become driders. Those few that survive the process intact and sane are some of the fiercest fighters the Drow have to offer. However, the secrecy of the ritual and the low chance of survival means that there are still few driders among the drow, and in some cases the process drove them mad.

Those driders that transitioned successfully are less prone to degenerative madness that plagues driders of other planes, like the forgotten realms, and often successfully reintegrate into larger drow society. Those driders that do go mad are unrepentant killers, driven out to secluded depths.

Dwarves

Dwarves: Duergar

(Monster Manual pg. 122)

The duergar are the remnants of dwarves trapped in the underdark during the breaking. They chose to dig deeper, rather than reconnect with the surface. They are evil and tireless, a people of cold iron and deep stone.

Eldrazi

The Eldrazi are extraplanar monstrosities. They are powerful, intelligent, persistant and, most of all, hungry. The eldrazi sate their hunger with the raw energies of entire planes, and the plane of Orizon is a tempting treat. Only the combined effort of the gods and those souls that volunteer in perpetual military service have held back their advance. The ancient artifacts, the titans, remain only as a last line of defense should the eldrazi ever enter the world bodily.

Elves

Elves: Drow

(Monster Manual pg. 126-129)

The Drow elves on Orizon were never corrupted by the influence of Lolth, they are not evil, but they are pragmatists in an area without a great deal of natural resources.

During Orizon’s breaking the underground and underdark were sealed off from the surface, some areas remain closed off to this day. They are plugged up by rockfall from earthquakes or explosions of elemental earth. Many different races were left trapped below the ground by the upheaval. The drow made use of existing cave structures, rebuilding their cities within large caverns, expanding and modifying the structures if need be.

However, the drow population and their accouterments gradually outstripped the capacity of the caverns and what were once raids exploded into full on war. The drow attacked each other, other underdark species and gradually developed concealed tunnels to the surface. The drow raided for resources and slaves and have expanded their territory.

This culture of war and raids has lead to a ruthless warlike society. There are intellectuals and pacifists among the drow, but they are rarely encountered by those outside their society. Most people only ever see drow raiders or slavers, so they are believed to be, on the whole, a race of evil warmongers and thieves.

The Drow are seen by other races to be aggressive, sadistic and hedonistic. They are also seen as passionate, canny, and courteous.

Drow cities are metropolises of the underdark, and home to numerous different races underneath the ruling drow.

Though there is no Lolth, a Drow Priestess of Lolth could be used for a spellcasting clan matriarch or a more powerful mage.

Elves: Feywilders

(Homebrew: Original)

At the breaking, some of Orizon’s elves fled to the plane of faerie, over the decades immediately following the breaking they were bathed in the sudden flood of magical energy and were changed. Gradually they became warped, their bodies became light and slender, their legs became long and hooved, they began to grow horns atop their heads. Gradually these elves became more sylvan, even their personalities shifted, becoming more flighty and whimsical and more prone to glee and rage.

The feywilder elves have largely remained inside of the plane of faerie, the alterations they suffered during their flight has made them very well adapted to life in the fey plane. They move swiftly through the brush and the wood and can blend easily into the shadows. They have, in their transition to the faerie, become the most ardent protectors of their adopted home they hunt intruders and any who they feel may mar the beauty of their home. Feywilder elves value beauty in all things and work to both spread beauty and brutally punish “eyeblights” who would despoil it.

Feywilder elves don’t live as long as other elves, but they are more virile, and the population of feywilder elves has expanded far across the plane of faerie, occupying numerous different rules, both in the courts of the archfey and in their own communities.

The feywilder elves are a wild bunch, they live in civilized societies, in castles and kingdoms, some serving the archfey, some have established kingdoms and communities for themselves. But the feywilder elves enjoy the delights of faerie, they hunt beasts and they train blink dogs and displacer beasts to serve as pets and hunting companions. There are few things that feywilder elves enjoy quite like they enjoy games, and they will often turn ordinary activities into games, constantantly competeting with each other in shows of oneupsmanship.

Fern Hound

(Homebrew)

The creations of the Fey Lord Lord Thezmothete built to patrol its territory, acting as watchers, protectors, and guides of the fey lord’s green places. Fern hounds are constructed entirely of plant matter, wood makes up their bones, vines their muscles, their hides are flared out leaves. Sap pumps through their veins and when they shake, pollen scatters around them. The fey hounds are not precisely intelligent, but they are loyal, and they will follow the position they were put to when Lord Thezmothete created them.

Some people seek out the fey lord and ask for a boon, taking one of the fey creatures as a pet, companion, or even a familiar.

Fire Lizard

(Homebrew: Original)

Also called “dragonets”, these small beasts are distantly related to the huge drakes and dragons these clever little lizards are highly empathic, they can telepathically communicate their emotions and visual impressions. They fly in nimble, darting patterns, swirling on the winds around the shores. Fire lizards are also able to, like their name implies, breathe fire, occasionally their dainty flight is highlighted by a small gout of flame.

Fire lizards form lifelong empathic bonds at birth, bonding with the first creature to feed them as they hatch from their eggs. This keeps families of fire lizards close and also makes the small creatures loyal pets to anyone who can find them when they hatch or take the time to care for their eggs.

The fire lizards eyes are kaleidoscopic prisms, the color in their eye reflecting their emotional state. Fire lizards come in five different colors, blue, bronze, brown, gold, and green. Their color represents their gender and abilities.

Gold fire lizards are called “queens,” they are the only ones able to lay fertile eggs after an endurance race of a mating flight. Green fire lizards are the other females of the species, they also fly mating flights and lay eggs, but their eggs are not fertile.

Bronze, brown, and blue fire lizards are the males. The bronzes are the largest and strongest, the browns have great stamina, blue fire lizards are the smallest males and are quick and nimble.

On Vanchilia, fire lizards are frequently seen around the underdark where they hunt small birds and windfish.

Jellyfish modified in the same way as windfish to have a lifting airbag on their bodies to let them float.

Sky Whales

Sky whales usually travel in pods along long routes that cross over both the seas and the land. These massive mammals are a wonderful sight and are frequently hunted, but with great difficulty, as they are very capable of defending themselves and destroying ships that come too close. If they are undisturbed they are a very peaceful species and are usually accompanied by their own small ecosystems of bugs, moss, barnacles, windfish and birds.

Formorian

(Monster Manual pg. 136)

The formorian giants are primarily found in the plane of faerie, hiding in the fey caverns that make up its equivalent of the underdark or pillaging mountain routes and farms. Occasionally formorian even rampage out into the material plane, plowing through portals. Typically these raiders simply grab things and haul them back into faerie, other times they become trapped and make it their goal to ensure everything suffers from their “imprisonment.”

Many of the formorians are the raiding arms of Brete’s Smashfish, the giantess queen of the mountain. She has bent them to her service and sends them out to strike the world below.

Froghemoth

(Volo's Guide to Monsters pg. 145)

Created as simple shock troops in the era before the breaking froghemoths were brutally effective. Though rarely used, some were dropped behind enemy lines to sew chaos where they remained to breed. Though, by their nature they spread slowly they are still a tremendous threat to those swampy regions of the ground.

Giant Creatures

The natural world of Orizon is lush and bountiful, this enables some creatures to grow to much greater size than they could otherwise, some reaching a truly massive scale. Giant beasts are especially common on the ground of Orizon, where they roam large. Giant cattle, buffalo, and elk are popular targets of hunters of the ground territories and can roam in literally massive herds or integrate themselves into the structure of smaller herds.

Giant Elephant

On very rare occasions a lucky person will get to see one of these beatifle creatures. Their lumbering grace is a sight to see measuring in at almost one hundred feet tall, these are the largest land going creature in orizon.

Giant Tortoise

Tremendous plodding beasts, the giant tortoises are slow and placid, and absurdly strong and tough. These huge meandering reptiles are usually content to simply wander and nibble at greenery. They are incredibly long lived and keep growing throughout their lives. The absolute largest of them grow larger than buildings.

Giant tortoises are often domesticated and haltered, their prodigious strength makes them useful as beasts of burden. They often harnessed to haul caravans and wagons, the largest of them can haul small houses, or even carry them on their back. Giant tortoises don’t take well to domestication, but they are placid and peaceable and accept directions easily enough if they are led.

Goblins

Goblin: Winged Goblin

Goblins that were modified by wild magic that gave them light bodies and wings, the combination has proven to be a successful one and they have since spread to become their own distinct goblin race.

Giants

(Monster Manual pg. 149-156)

(Volo's Guide to Monsters pg. 18-33)

There are many different breeds of giant on Orizon, and they have spread themselves out among the world. Giants are a fearsome presence for the sailors of Orizon, the boulders of a Giant defending their territory can come flying through the sky without warning, and a sailor must stay on alert.

There is no all-encompassing hierarchical structure in giant society like the ordning, but there are similar elements of it in a mutual respect for shared heritage between giants

Hill and Stone giants remain on the ground, staying within the ranges described in their name. They can be some of the biggest threats for sailing ships, hurling stones at any ship that happens to fly within their sights.

Fire giants roam the underdark, seeking out the molten earth from the depths of the soil to build their fortresses of stone and steel.

Frost giants seek out the ice and snow, hunting for glaciers to build their lives around.

Cloud giants take their place on the skylands, one of their bitterest points of opposition with the dragons are for the finest skylands.

Storm giant live on the highest skylands, in regions at a higher altitude than most others can stand, living in reclusive contemplation where they study the arcane arts and the nature of the broader cosmos. Storm giants are the guardians of a unique skill, they know the secrets and rituals necessary to move a skyland. Some give the storm giants a fortune to reposition a large skyland to a more advantageous location.

Gith

(-)

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The gith are all but unknown to the people of Orizon. Some say it is because they have greater concerns elsewhere, but the truth is that they fear the plane. Their time as planar explorers has given them some insight and they see the effects left after the breaking as more threatening than any gains might be worth.

Griffon

(Monster Manual pg. 174)

Griffons are some of the most prized flying mounts that the people of Orizon can claim. Griffons are frequently domesticated to be raised as mounts used by nobles and knights.

Griffons are ferocious and prideful, they are expensive to keep and difficult to train, which makes them all the more of a status symbol to those who own them. They are especially valued by knights, as their fierce claws makes them a weapon as much as a mount. That fierceness also makes them valuable to nobility, though there are many foolish nobles with griffon scars from improperly handling them.

Griffons are difficult to breed, and wild eggs are much more valuable. Whenever a breeding pair of griffons are discovered in the wild, they are closely watched in the hopes of stealing their eggs. These wild breeding pairs are typically protected.

Golem

(Monster Manual 167-170)

These heavy constructs were much more common in the old world, but the techniques for their creation persist though the resources that went into their creation are more precious than ever.

Ancient War Golem

(Homebrew: Original)

Antique constructs, the powerhouses of the ancient world, these golems served both as tanks of the front line of hideous wars between the nations and the stoic defenders of important sites. Unlike the development of other golems these constructs were nothing more than weapons and they were incredibly effective ones. The presence of an ancient golem clearly marked off the presence of a military powerful enough to afford the construction of one of these weapons.

Those ancient golems that survive beyond the ancient wars and the breaking that followed continue to obey their old orders as best they are able, defending sites of import and power, or aggressively attacking anyone that they happen to come across that don’t know long forgotten passcodes.

Harpy

(Monster Manual pg. 181)

On Orizon, harpies are often compared to plagues, the largest communities have been known to cover smaller skylands like a screeching blanket. They sing to lure sailors and sky ships close to their nests, then swarm to feast and loot the bloody corpses.

Harpy nests are one of the greatest dangers for airship sailors, not simply for their rending claws and teeth, but also for the ability of their song to lure ships disastrously off course. Some other predators take advantage of nearby harpy nests to take advantage of their luring song.

Hippogriff

(Monster Manual pg. 184)

Hippogriff are domesticated similar to horses, with ranches on the skylands specifically dedicated to their husbandry. They are some of the most common flying mounts and most skyland stables house several of these flying creatures.

Some ranchers make a brisk business raising hippogriffs as flying mounts, and some small archipelagos are cordoned off as ranching areas for these omnivorous beasts.

House Griffon

House griffons are a miniature species of griffon, altered to be domestic pets rather than fierce predators. Where true griffons are large carnivores and admixtures of lions and eagles, house griffons are a mixture of house cats and hawks.

House griffons are a popular pet, although they are expensive, and difficult to care for. House griffons are famous for their ability to deal with pests, hunting with the senses of both their component parts. Domestic house griffons are affectionate but independent creatures and derive great joy from hunting and from preening.

The semimagical nature of house griffons make them popular creatures as familiars for spellcasters who want a distinctive companion.

Hydra

(Monster Manual pg. 190)

Hydra are a menace to those merfolk that live in fresh water, the standing merfolk known as the river folk. Hydra inhabit many of the same regions as them, and they can swim into the waters and spread death and destruction. They may also swim up rivers to the more diverse ground settlements that trade with the skylands.

Despite this frequency of their visits to the ground territories, hydra are almost completely unknown to the people of the skylands.

Jackalope

(Homebrew: Original)

The jackalope is, by all appearances, a rabbit with small pronged horns emerging from its head. The jackalope uses its horns to attack predators and compete for mates.

Jackalopes will aggressively attack nearby animals that get too close, even those many times larger than itself, goring legs with their sharp horns.

Jackalopes are believed to be incredibly fond of whiskey and the drink is often used to lay traps for the small coneys to hunt them for their meat but also for the horns to use as magical components.

Jellyfish

(Homebrew: Original)

Jellyfish are some of the most ancient creatures to exist on any plane. They are simple drifters within the oceans, simply floating and eating without any thought to what they do or where they go.

Jellyfish do have simple stingers on their tentacles, that spread their toxins at the slightest brush. Some of these venoms are deadly, even to creatures the size of a human.

The jellyfish of the oceans are a slight danger to merfolk. But so long as they’re given a wide berth, they’re considered largely harmless, so long as they are not swarming in a “bloom.”

Bubble Jellies

Flying creatures birthed from the same circumstances as windfish. Bubble jellies drift through the skies with mindless concern. The same as jellyfish in the oceans, bubble jellies are largely considered harmless unless they should gather en masse in a large “bloom” of jellyfish.

Bubble jellies are useful creatures to many individuals. Their toxins are used for poisons, medicines and potions. The gels in their “bubbles” are useful for levitation effects, some people eat it to enjoy a slight “lift,” airship makers mix it and use it in the construction of flying vessels. Bioluminescent bubble jellies in the underground are useful for lighting the dark passageways.

Bubble Jellies have the same statistic as Jellyfish, with their swim speed replaced by an equilivant flying speed.

Ki-Rin

(Volo's Guide to Monsters pg. 163-164)

The Ki-Rin are survivors, first of the breaking and then of the godswar some few have remained behind to maintain their history of service to the gods. The ki-ren are extraordinarily rare, but they serve as best they are able. The gods, especially the new gods, respect the Ki-Rin but they are more likely to assign their angels to tasks. So the Ki-rin have taken a more abstract idea to service, deciding instead to help make places safe for worship and worshippers and to serve as teachers and guides.

Kuo-Toa

(Monster Manual pg. 198-200)

(WotC Product Identity)

The Feeble minded kuo-toa and their habit of the wild creation of mysterious “gods” has made them sort of an early indicator for the incursion of outside gods or entities. The kuo-toa are almost supernaturally aware of these extradivine influences and craft pieces of them into the gods they create.

Lycanthropes

(Monster Manual pg. 206-211)

The curse of lycanthropy predates even the breaking. Though it may be treated if caught early enough, and some simply don’t survive long enough to become turned, the pernicious curse remains. And it can spread at a worrying and seditious rate. Some try and cope with their curse and new life with elaborate methods, chaining themselves up and locking themselves away for example. Others embrace the goddess Diamete, running into the wilderness to enjoy their newfound bestial natures.

Werebat

(Homebrew: Original)

Ferocious and feral, werebats are mindless savages when they transform. Some try to resist the transformation as long as possible, losing control in a fit of blood and moonlight. Some are unaware of their new dual natures, until they can no longer deny the brutal evidence.

Vampires delight in keeping werebats as servants or slaves, sending them out as agents of brutal retribution and terror.

Wereeagle

(Homebrew: Original)

The ancient curse of lycanthropy expanded into Orizon, the magic of the curse spread to the eagles of the world and the curse began to slowly spread among the people. Some wereeagles are animalistic brutes, but many are observant and fierce. Wereeagles are haughty and shrill opportunists, ready to take what they want.

The powerful eyes of the eagles means that they enjoy taking advantage of the skylands, using their vision to spot opportunities and prey.

Mist Stalker

(Homebrew: Original)

Drifting tentacled beasts that stalk the clouds, they emit a thick cloud from the vents along the top of their rigid bell-like heads that obscures them as they hunt. Mist stalkers drift between clouds, snagging birds or windfish in their tentacles and using their stiff, blade-like ridges to cut larger prey into more managable chunks and to keep threats at a distance from its soft underbelly.

The mist stalker’s cloud both confuses and disorients its prey and the creature has special senses that allows it to sense the creatures that are inside of the clouds they mist stalker created.

Sailors keep a watch out for small clouds that seem to grow larger or that move against the wind, as these are signs of a Mist Stalker or pack on the hunt.

Modrons

(-)

There are no modrons extisting within the plane of Orizon, as there is no plane of order or a Lord Primus to give them form or purpose. Though, should the lord of Mechanus ever discover Orizon, it would likely consider its wild magic an affront to its sensibilites.

Nothic

(Monster Manual pg. 236)

The twisted forms of wizards that delved too deep into the nature of magic, they discovered an ancient trap placed within some tomes of the old world. These tomes promised secrets for the spellcasters that used them, but were in fact traps created by the ancient governments of the old world to deprive their enemies of their spellcasters. The poor fools who read too much of these books and attempted to cast some of the spells within them instead found themselves warped.

It’s believed that the ancients found a cure for this curse, but if they had, it has long since been lost.

Ogres

(Monster Manual pg. 237)

Ogres are almost never seen on the skylands. Instead they live, for ogres, relatively peaceful lives on the remote regions on the ground. Unless they should happpen to stumble near to a settlement on the ground, in which case they come in swinging, causing massive damage to life and property.

Ogres are frequently recruited by the monstrous legion of orcs and goblins to act akin to tanks, lumbering brutes who hit hard and can take a beating.

Otyugh

(Monster Manual pg. 248)

Occasionally these creatures are brought up to the skylands to feed off of the trash and compost of the cities. Their feces is incredible fertile for manure, and they are a valuable asset to a city, so long as they are kept on the outskirts and well fed. Those beasts that are mishandled will wander into the cities loooking for more and become a dangerous menace, so they are not often employed.

Other otyughs occasionally find their way to areas below the skylands, feeding off the ofal thrown off the sides.

Playtpus

(Homebrew: Original)

Platypus are a relatively common species on Orizon. These egg-laying mammals swim through the rivers of the world on nearly every continent and a few skylands, snacking on insects and small frogs and fish.

Roc

(Monster Manual pg 260)

Rocs are all but revered by the peoples of the skylands, their massive silhouettes are greeted with terror and awe. Roc feathers are a precious and valuable treasure to the people living on the sky. Some people use them as magical ingredients in the creation of airships or as decorations.

Fortunately for those that revere them, rocs tend to be sated by the massive herds of large beasts that roam the ground regions and rarely deign to sieze anything human-sized. Sometimes they hunt sky whales or zephyr sharks, swooping down on them and pinning them to the ground. Tragically for some sailors, rocs may attack ships that drift too close to their skyland nests.

Slaadi

(-)

The toad-like slaadi are all but unknown to the plane of Orizon, having no plane of chaos to call home and no stone from which to spawn.

Slaver Engines

(Homebrew: Original)

The creations of the nefarious and mysterious “Other” that was responsible for the fall of the empire of Rem, slaver engines are a bastardization of Illithid biology and technology converted to serve the Other’s ends.

The core of a slaver engine is the hive engine, a bowl of brass and gold with runes carved into it allowing the creatures within to survive indefinitely. Along the top of this bowl is a glassy crystalline seal, keeping the hive queen within dormant and healthy in her briney solution. The engine needs to be activated manually but once active, will awaken the queen which will begin to generate the swarm.

The tactics of a slaver engine and the swarm is to release a number of warrior drones to defend the queen and begin escorting people to the engine, restraining people that resist, then the hive queen generates a swarm of slaver drones. Individual slaver drones have a low chance of converting people so the hive queen compensates by generating them in great numbers. Should there be concentrated resistance, the hive queen focuses on the production of warriors and sends them out to surpress the enemy, defending the hive itself and readying a swarm, anticipating that converted foes will begin defending the swarm against their former allies.

The hive queen is unable to move herself and cannot live unless it is kept damp by the briney mixture inside the slaver engine. The rest of the hive also requires the brine within to mature as quickly as they are able to. To move, the hive queen coordinates her warriors to move the engine as a whole, traditionally the other would direct her servants to move slaver engines into position. Servant of the Other

Creatures that fail to resist the converting effect of a slaver drone gain the new flaw, Servant of the Other: They will do they best they are able to obey orders given by the other and defend their constructs. Otherwise they will behave as if everything is normal. This is not absolutely perfect, someone immediately descended from the Other could confuse those infected into obeying them as readily as they would obey the Other.

This flaw can only be removed by a Greater Restoration spell.

Slaver Engines and Mind Flayers. Illithids despise slaver engines and will destroy any they should find. This is in part motivated by the fact that anyone under the Other’s infection is immune to ceremorphosis and some other illithid abilities and techniques.

Suffused

(Homebrew: Original)

The humanoid “survivors” of the ancient and powerful technomagical civilization. They were ripped into insanity by the magical devestation known as the breaking. Their bodies crackle with magical energy and light shines out of broken skin and metallic tubes across their flesh.

At times the suffused screech out violent howls of pain and loss, lashing out at nothing with blasts of magical energy. Terrifying displays that suggest, somewhere, they comprehend what they once were, and mourn that loss.

Lost. The suffused patrol the ruins of the cities that were their home when they were able to act with sanity, now they simply roam, attacking anything that crosses their path with brutal magical energy.

The only creatures that escape their wrath are other suffused and creatures of the old world’s magic. They ignore each other, seemingly unaware of each other’s presence. Even when attacking outsiders, they simply rage, regardless of the presence of others of their kind.

Forgotten Magics. The suffused were once powerful spellcasters, in their twisted state their knowledge has long since been lost, but their ability remains. Their casting is feral and instinctive. They react brutally but lack the ability to plan, or even to comprehend the energies they’re wielding.

Troll

(Monster Manual pg. 291)

Trolls are native to the world of Orizon, but they are all but unknown to the people living on the skylands. On the ground they are known as fearsome shock troopers of the monstrous hordes. Troops that feast on their victims and revel in the chaos and destruction.

Trilobite

(Homebrew: Original)

One of the earliest creatures to rise in the ancient oceans and some of the most successful, they lived nearly every lifestyle that could be found in the sea. Some moved over the sea-bed as predators, some were scavengers or filter feeders and some swam, feeding on plankton.

Trilobites are best known for the unique shape of their exoskeletons, with their broad shovel-like heads and lobed, segmented, bodies.

Umber Hulk

(Monster Manual pg. 292)

WotC Product Identity

The insectoid umberhulk is a terror of the underground vaults, mines, and caves. They burst out through the tunnels to hunt for any meat they can consume, and sometimes that includes miners or underground settlers.

The Umber hulk is completely unknown on the skylands.

Unicorn

(Monster Manual pg. 293-294)

Unicorns are often considered by those on the skylands to be creaures of myth, but they are real enough, they roam the wild places, drawn to people and places with a great deal of influence from the celestials or powerful good.

There are almost no unicorns to be found in the distant altitudes of the skylands, and there are occasionally attempts to hunt them and drag them up to the lands above. These attempts are always unsuccessful.

Windfish

(Homebrew)

Windfish is a catchall term for numerous species of flying fish. These fish were altered, though no one is entirely clear when or how, into flying animals. Some drift along suspended by inflated gas bags, some have special blubber that’s lighter than air, some soar on broad fins, some others are simply enchanted, held up by the similar magic as the skylands.

Windfish are fished in various ways, hooked as they drift under the skylands, where they eat bugs and smaller fish. Some drift in large shoals through the skies and others quickly dart from skyland to skyland, hunting smaller windfish and birds.

Wyvern

(Monster Manual pg. 303)

Wyvern are powerful and fearsome flying beasts, and they are a popular flying mount, especially for those riders that want something as intimidating as they are fast. They are difficult beasts to tame and even harder to master, only the most fearless of riders have wrangled a wyvern.

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